Monday, January 10, 2005

Representative Christopher H. Smith's removal as chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee by the House Republican caucus drew strong protests on Thursday from veterans' groups that praised Mr. Smith as unwilling to toe the Republican Party line.

"The Republicans needed a chairman who would consistently say no to veterans' groups and say yes to the Republican leadership," said Richard B. Fuller, national legislative director of the Paralyzed Veterans of America, which has about 22,000 members and is based in Washington. "That meant get rid of Chris Smith."

Part of a continuing series about the three branches of government -- the executive, the executive and the executive.